On the green, green turf of an English stately home, a leisurely and
fashionable game of cricket is in progress. At the wicket Bertram Oliphant
West - Bo to his friends - watches the approach of the incoming batsman,
his best friend Captain Humphrey Bagshaw. The game resumes, a run is
called for and as Bo and Bagshaw cross, Bagshaw trips and is run out.

Among the spectators are Sir Cyril Ponsonby, the owner of the estate, and
his daughter Lady Jane Ponsonby. Lady Jane cannot decide on whether to
marry Bo or Bagshaw.

Bo commiserated with his friend over being run out, but is shocked, when,
in everyone's hearing Bagshaw accuses him of deliberately tripping him. In
the ensuring recriminations all present side with Bagshaw whilst Lady Jane
spurns poor Bo.

Bo, accompanied by his faithful manservant Simpson, seeks to bury his
shame by enlisting in the French Foreign legion. They set off for Sidi Bel
Abbes.

Travelling by camel they call at a cafe on the outskirts to inquire the
way and meet Zigzig the owner and Sgt Nocker of the Legion. He is
'shacked-up' very cosily with the voluptuous Zigzig. Nocker is sleeping
off some form of orgy, but Zigzig directs Bo and Simpson to the barracks.
Life in the Legion under Commandant Burger and his adjutant Capitaine Le
Pice, not to mention the scheming Sgt Nocker and the tough Corporal
Clotski, is full of pitfalls for Bo and the indefatigable Simpson.

Sheik Abdul Abulbul, leader of the Touaregs, and his henchmen Riff and
Raff are proving a formidable thorn in the flesh of authority and
constantly disrupt the routine of the foreign infidels.

Meanwhile, back in England Lady Jane learns of Bo's innocence from Bagshaw
on his deathbed, and sets out to tell Bo that his name has been cleared.

Fortunately, Bo and Simpson discover that they hold an advantage over Sgt
Nocker, which they exploit to make life easier for themselves. Nocker, Bo
and Simpson, now friends, visit Zigzigs cafe where they meet and are
enchanted by the dancer Corktip. Prompted by Abdul she lures Nocker and Bo
to her house where they are taken captive. Happily the faithful Simpson
has followed his master.

After many adventures on land and sea, Lady Jane arrives at the barracks
and is surprised to meet an old and valued friend in Burger. The
Commandant directs her to the cafe, where Abdul is captivated by her
beauty and, affected by too much ‘sherbet’; she is enticed to his tent.

Meanwhile the captives, Bo and Nocker, arrive at Oasis El Nooki, followed
at a distance by Simpson. Lady Jane, still under the influence of
'sherbet', is reunited with Bo who is horrified to learn that she is about
to become Abduls thirteenth wife. Simpson is captured and the party find
temporary sanctuary in the harem tent but are forced to give themselves
up. Learning of Abduls plans to attack the Legion Fort of Zuassantneuf;
the wily Nocker escapes to warn the garrison at Sidi Bel Abbes.

Sadly Nocker has cried wolf once too often and instead of the heroes
welcome he had anticipated, he is placed under arrest. Irrepressible as
ever, he eventually persuades the Commandant to organise a relief force.
So they set out for the oasis where they find Bo and Simpson barely alive.

Bo confirms that Abdul and his band intend attacking the fort and have
taken Lady Jane along with them. Now begins an arduous march across the
burning sands of the desert, under a cruel sun to the relief of Fort
Zuassantneuf.

The heat and lack of water take their toll, aided by considerable
dissension in the ranks. So that it is Burger, Nocker, Bo, Simpson,
Clotski and a handful of legionnaires who struggle on, leaving Le Pice to
return for further reinforcements. Against inhuman odds, the Commandant
drives his depleted force in the general direction of the fort. Alas! The
garrison has been wiped out and the Riffs are celebrating their victory
nearby.

Burger takes over the fort and Bo is distressed to discover that the
victory celebrations include the impending marriage of Abdul to Lady Jane.
They rush to the rescue.

At the Riff encampment, a banquet is in progress and Abdul, while
congratulating his warriors on their victory, exhorts them to give gifts
to the glory of Abdul and his bride-to-be. Lady Jane is sent to his tent
to receive these tributes and it is there that she is rescued by Bo,
Burger and Nocker, who leave the hapless Simpson, unconvincingly
disguised, in her place.

Once again the fort is under a stage of siege, the irate Abdul pursuing
Simpson to its very doors. The defiant comrades repel every attack until
their ammunition runs out and it is left to the audacious Sgt Nocker to
effect their salvation by an ingenious plan.

The story ends where it began, with the surviving characters meeting on
the same cricket field. Bo takes his stance at the wicket, ready to
receive his first delivery. The bowler turns at the end of his run, and
bowls an explosive ball. Abduls back!

review

Originally known as 'Follow that Camel' or the one with Bilko in it, this
is a historical parody of the Beau Geste films. In the hope of fully
launching the Carry Ons into an international market, Phil Silvers was
cast as Sgt. Nocker. Primarily known as Sgt. Bilko from the long running
CBS series, the backers must have thought that they would have a huge
American hit on their hands. Silvers presence neither helped nor hindered
the production and the film did the same sort of business as 'Don't Lose
Your Head' did several months before. Basically Silvers plays the Nocker
role exactly the same way he plays Bilko, although that’s not necessarily
a bad thing. After all that’s why he was chosen for the part.

The whole look of the film is extremely satisfying, mainly thanks to Alan
Humes excellent lighting work. This is one of the rare times that the
south coast of England (Camber Sands to be precise) looks exactly like a
baking hot desert.
Along with 'Don't Lose Your Head', this was one of the crossover films
that explains it rather odd title. Although overseas it was known as Carry
On In The Legion. Hmm, not sure which titles better.

So the regulars in the film generally play second fiddle to Phil Silvers,
who is on screen 90% of the time. Of them, Kenneth Williams portrays the
German Commandant with suitable aplomb, even going as far to get a brutal
haircut. Charles Hawtrey is as ever Charles Hawtrey. Jim Dale and Peter
Butterworth make an excellent double act with suitable understated
performances. Bernard Bresslaw gets a dry run for a role he would
virtually recreate in Up The Khyber the following year, however the female
performers are seriously underwritten for. Joan Sims has a few good lines
as ZigZig, but Angela Douglas and Anita Harris don't really add anything
to the plot apart from their looks.

To sum up, Follow That Camel is an average historical Carry On, but
certainly not the best. Alas Phil Silvers doesn't fit in well and as a
result doesn't really feel like a proper Carry On. Although some of the
gags are funny, they don't hit the mark as frequently as 1964's Cleo or
1968's Up The Khyber. The film also suffers from having dark moments e.g.
A suicide within the first 10 minutes, soldiers dying, the desperate march
to the Fort. That said, all in all its fairly entertaining, just that the
team were capable of producing much better.

other information

The location filming at Camber Sands took three weeks, the longest in
the series.

When The Rank Organisation took over the Carry On series from Anglo
Amalgamated in 1966, they wanted to remove the famous 'Carry On' prefix,
fearing that their cinematic output would be tainted with the low brow
name. The two films that were affected by this were 'Don't Lose Your Head'
and 'Follow That Camel'. Realising their error, Rank re-released them both
soon afterwards and the box office takings soared.

Names initially considered for the Phil Silvers role included Woody Allen.

Phil Silvers was dramatically losing his site during filming, so has to
wear both contact lenses and glasses.

Sheena the Camel was on loan from Chessington Zoo. Unfortunately it had
never walked on sand before, so tracks had to be laid down for it.

Although not involved in the film, three days into shooting Sid James was
rushed into hospital with a heart attack.

Whilst buried in the sand, Jim Dale and Peter Butterworth has to be
wrapped in blankets and given brandy to keep the cold out.